Chapter 35: Tycoon Simulation 5
Staring at the conspicuous “Closed” sign on the door, the little boy’s eyes filled with a trace of disappointment. “Is it all sold out?” He had specifically brought two plates, planning to pack a portion back for his grandfather!
Looking at the little boy’s aggrieved expression, Chu Yun felt an immense wave of pity in her heart. In the end, the word “yes” failed to slip past her lips.
“It is sold out, but you have special, elite treatment!”
“Really?” The corners of the little boy’s mouth instantly curved upward in delight once more.
Chu Yun smiled like a wicked auntie kidnapping a child. “Yes, come on in.”
“That’s fantastic! Thank you, Big Sister. You’re truly a wonderful person.”
What a sweet tongue. Chu Yun held absolutely zero resistance against sincere, adorable, kind, and clever children. If he spoke a few more sentences, she wouldn’t even be able to resist gifting him all the treasures inside her space.
Considering the little boy had a family of three, Chu Yun prepared a portion of every single dish for him as per her routine.
After sending off the mother and son duo, Chu Yun and Yu Wenhao went out to purchase some supplies. Xu Dongdong stayed behind to paint; among the crowd of customers that morning, some had visited his art studio out of boredom while waiting in line. Feeling his style was classic and antique, they spent 5,000 gold coins to purchase two paintings, so he needed to paint a few more pieces to fill the gap.
They went to the exact same mall from last time.
She needed to buy a door curtain to block out the peeping toms, ten more sets of tables and chairs—with five to display outside and five to place inside Yu Wenhao’s shop—several dozen more sets of bowls and utensils, a food steamer, an automatic floor scrubber, and an automatic cultivator.
Since this world was devoid of plants, Chu Yun ran through the entire shopping center without finding an automatic cultivator. It was only after she reached out to Butler Zhou for help that she finally located a machine with similar functions. Once everything that needed to be bought was secured, Chu Yun and Yu Wenhao returned fully laden.
Having made a hefty sum of gold coins from the roaring business over the past few days, Chu Yun’s account balance stood at 40,000 credits after deducting the expenses from her shopping spree.
Day 5 in Green City.
The crowd of customers had multiplied over the past two days, and the closing time grew earlier and earlier. Complaints abounded, but complaining was one thing—the next day, they still lined up like clockwork. The little boy and his mother came every day, and Chu Yun always kept an extra portion reserved for them.
The stock inside Chu Yun’s storage ring was nearly depleted, but a new batch of green vegetables had matured. Furthermore, the staple crops and watermelons were also due for harvest today.
Selling only the final basket of green vegetables today, Chu Yun left the task to Xu Dongdong and Yu Wenhao, entering Happy Farm early in the morning with immense anticipation.
Presently, the farm presented a scene of vibrant prosperity. The corn and rice had all matured, and as far as the eye could see, it was a breathtaking blanket of gold. Bathed in the sunlight, it gleamed with an even more dazzling brilliance, appearing like a field packed with gold. The vines above the potatoes had also withered and dried, indicating they could be pulled up for harvest. She had successively plucked many tender sweet potato leaves to enjoy as a stir-fry, which tasted exceptionally fresh and delicate. Looking at their growth status, it was now time to pull up the roots as well. Three new varieties had been added to the vegetables: tomatoes, pumpkins, and water spinach.
The gentle breeze swept over with the fresh fragrance of melons and fruits, cleansing the pent-up gloom from her chest and leaving her thoroughly refreshed. The five farm employees entered the instance right on time for their tasks. They happily greeted their boss and went about busying themselves according to her instructions.
As usual, one-tenth of all the crops was left for seed harvesting, while the rest was fully plucked. Aided by the electric harvester and the automatic threshing machine, the group’s speed was much faster.
One employee washed the corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes. Once they were clean, Chu Yun delivered them outside in advance for Yu Wenhao and Xu Dongdong to process; the primary cooking method for these three varieties was steaming, and steaming them in advance to store inside her storage ring would save a massive amount of hassle tomorrow. One employee washed the green vegetables, while another threshed the rice hulls. One operated the cultivator to till the land and water the soil.
Because she had planted an extra half-mu of vegetables, the yield was over three times that of the previous harvest. A mere eight varieties of vegetables occupied nearly half of her space. Fortunately, the storage ring could stack and store items within its perimeter based on Chu Yun’s thoughts, otherwise an ordinary warehouse would absolutely be inadequate.
She also plucked over a dozen watermelons, planning to send one to the little boy’s house, keep one for themselves to eat, and leave the remaining eight to sell. She sliced open a watermelon on the spot, keeping Xu Dongdong and Yu Wenhao’s shares, and giving everyone a large piece. Aside from the watermelon, she distributed a pound of rice, three ears of corn, five potatoes and sweet potatoes, and a pound of vegetables to each employee.
Cradling their respective shares of supplies, the employees grinned from ear to ear. This job was safe and high-paying, leaving everyone else in the community burning with envy.
Day 6 in Green City.
Chu Yun’s new varieties triggered another wave of fanatical attention and discussion.
Butler Zhou lent them two bodyguards. The two stone-faced保镖 stood there clad in the uniform of the Zhou Corporation, and no one dared to cause trouble. Butler Zhou stated that for as long as Chu Yun operated here, they could borrow them for free.
Yu Wenhao stopped maintaining order. He set up a massive table at the junction between his shop and Chu Yun’s storefront, beginning to sell staple foods and watermelons.
Four large stacks of food steamers, nearly 1.5 meters high, sat atop the table, with the food freshly retrieved from her space still emitting steam. Beside the steamers lay several large watermelons with beautiful stripes, appearing vibrantly crisp and instantly stimulating one’s appetite.
The aroma of corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes wafted to the tip of everyone’s noses, and no one could resist the allure of carbohydrates—especially for citizens who had never eaten a staple food in their lives. These were sold by the piece, at 100 gold coins each.
The watermelons produced by Chu Yun’s farm were all larger than normal, easily weighing several dozen pounds, practically comparable to winter melons. The crowd craned their necks to stare hungrily at the round, plump watermelons, holding their filming gadgets to record them from every angle.
Now that new varieties had manifested in reality, who was to say they wouldn’t be the next Yuan Jingjing? Word had it that Yuan Jingjing was currently raking in money through endorsements and advertising fees until her hands grew soft.
Holding a long fruit knife, Yu Wenhao sliced a melon. With a crisp crack, the watermelon split into two halves, revealing the vibrant red flesh inside. The flesh was tender and succulent, emitting a fresh fragrance before it even reached one’s mouth. The watermelons were sold by the slice, at 100 gold coins each.
The first person in line had eaten green vegetables for several days in a row. Seeing new varieties today, he bought an ear of corn, a sweet potato, and a slice of watermelon without a moment’s hesitation. If Chu Yun hadn’t instituted a purchase limit of 3 items per person, he would have wanted to hoard a few more to take home.
Ice existed in this world, and the watermelons had been chilled with ice blocks in advance, carrying a touch of refreshing coolness. With the first bite of watermelon down, the juice, packed with fruit fragrance, rushed over his palate—crisp, sweet, and delicious, leaving him unable to put it down. While the second customer was still hesitantly picking which three items to choose, he had already ravenously finished his portion, smacking his lips to slowly savor the aftertaste.
The cold-faced bodyguards standing on either side couldn’t help but gulp their saliva. This job looked easy but was pure torture; clearly unable to contain the cravings in their mouths, they still had to stand perfectly upright to maintain discipline.
Fortunately, Chu Yun was considerate, and the employee lunch consisted of various green vegetables and staple foods, plus half a watermelon—guaranteed to fill them up. The two bodyguards were very reserved at first, but after tasting the flavor of the food, they couldn’t contain their decorum and began to devour it ravenously.
No wonder the topic on social media platforms remained sky-high. This was absolute heavenly delicacy; those nutrient solutions were woefully inferior by comparison, not even fitting to be called chaff.
That evening, the two bodyguards presented a massive watermelon to Old Master Zhou. The old master grinned from ear to ear, showering it with praise as he ate.
The carbohydrate craze exploded continuously for a full week without dying down. Even the hottest global celebrities would only top the trending list for a single night before being bumped down.
Because Chu Yun’s restaurant had emerged out of nowhere, it drove plants back into the public eye.
Backed by the support and communication of the patriarch of the Zhou Corporation, Chu Yun, to express her sincerity, presented a small pack of every plant seed she currently possessed to the government for free. Since Chu Yun was busy with the shop, Old Master Zhou of the Zhou Corporation personally delivered them on her behalf.
Inside the scientific laboratory, the white-haired researchers accepted these precious seed packs with eager anticipation and began drafting their layouts: a few grains for cultivation, a few grains for research as the experimental group, a few grains for the control group, and the rest kept as spares.
The laboratory belonged to the national government but cooperated with various nutrient solution manufacturers, and research breakthroughs would be prioritized for the manufacturers, so no one came to cause trouble for Chu Yun.
Furthermore, Chu Yun shared deep ties with the Zhou Corporation. Old Master Zhou had put out the word that anyone who dared to work against Chu Yun was working against his Zhou Corporation. The Zhou Corporation controlled the global real estate and construction industries, and no business operator would casually provoke a great family that owned land.
The prohibition on mukbang videos was also explicitly repealed, and numerous fresh food creators cropped up recently. They didn’t rely on looks or talent; simply by checking in at Chu Yun’s shop, filming a dining video paired with simple commentary, they could harvest a massive wave of followers. The more ravenously they ate, the more viewers tuned in.
The permits for the province where Green City was located were now drawn by luck through a lottery system. Local NPCs could still ride a flying car to arrive very quickly, but people from other cities currently had nowhere to spend their money even if they were wealthy. They kept their eyes glued to the lottery platform at the exact hour every day, praying to be the next lucky winner.
After Chu Yun gifted that batch of precious seeds for free, she received invitations from several great families, all wishing to invite her for a gathering. But because Chu Yun had to run the shop and head to Happy Farm to till the land afterward, she never had the time.
The plants sown by the research institute finally sprouted after fifteen days. That day, various media outlets raced to report the news. The image of that green shoot was massive, occupying the primary sections of various major news feeds.
These seeds weren’t watered with the brook water boosted by the zombie crystal nucleus, so their growth cycle matched normal plants. Consequently, a long period still remained before the popularization of plants, and Chu Yun’s little diner remained white-hot.
All this news was brought up by dining customers during casual chats, or told to her by Butler Zhou.
Right, Butler Zhou’s primary duties now included an extra task: accompanying the young master and the mistress to Chu Yun’s little restaurant every day to eat and check in. They came daily without fail. Ever since they started eating the food cooked by Chu Yun, the complexions of the mother and son grew visibly ruddy, and their mental states followed suit by taking a turn for the better.
The old master told her to look for Butler Zhou if she needed anything, and Chu Yun was anything but polite. She asked Butler Zhou to help her find news on Land Item Cards, claiming it was a magical artifact passed down from antiquity that was only usable for special groups like her to help boost her cultivation. Butler Zhou currently revered Chu Yun practically like a deity, agreeing whole-heartedly.
The resources behind Butler Zhou belonged to the Zhou Corporation, but searching still took quite a bit of effort.
When she received the message from Butler Zhou, it was already the 30th day, after the shop had closed.
At the time, Chu Yun was having dinner with Xu Dongdong and Yu Wenhao. Butler Zhou stated over the comms that he had located the Land Item Card she wanted, but the person said he wanted to negotiate with her, and the flying car to pick her up would arrive immediately. Chu Yun intended to expand and grow her farm; currently, a mere five mu of land was still too small.
This person was named Song Ming. He was a doctor before the game and had obtained this Land Item Card by a stroke of luck. For him, healing the wounded and rescuing the dying was his natural calling, as well as his means of livelihood. But after coming to this game, his talents couldn’t be displayed, and his life had been quite miserable.
It wasn’t until he secured this item card that he saw a turning point. He cleverly realized that the purpose of the game setting up this item card was to allow interaction and transactions between different communities. It sounded simple, but gathering a full set of five cards was incredibly difficult—especially for a physically weak doctor like him.
His medical skills were excellent, so he had secured an internship position at a hospital, earning a monthly salary of 10,000 credits. Recently, the red-hot small restaurant had gone viral globally, and during rest hours, he heard his colleagues discuss it until his ears practically developed calluses. At the time, his intuition told him this was done by a player like him.
Yesterday, he heard his colleagues mention that the Zhou Corporation was looking for some kind of Land Item Card and offering a heavy reward. He knew about the relationship between the small restaurant and the Zhou Corporation, and since only players knew about this item card, he guessed with a single thought that it was wanted by the people over at the restaurant.
Therefore, he came.
“I want a batch of medicine and an automated medicine synthesizer, packed inside a space-folding backpack,” Song Ming went straight to the point, handing over a list.
Chu Yun didn’t understand it, so she passed it to Butler Zhou.
Butler Zhou accepted the list, studying it carefully in his hand, remaining silent for quite a while.
Medicine and a space-folding backpack were completely fine. An automated medicine synthesizer wasn’t sold to the public and required negotiating with a medical equipment company, but it wasn’t a massive issue either. However, this man truly possessed a massive appetite; a single automated medicine synthesizer cost at least 1,000,000 credits, and it was the type that was rare even if you had the money.
Butler Zhou cast a glance at Chu Yun. She appeared determined to secure it, meaning this item card was highly important to her. Chu Yun was a massive benefactor to their family and a benefactor to the entire world; he would do everything in his power to help her.
Seeing the other party frown at the list, Song Ming’s heart hammered with anxiety, terrified they would refuse. He had researched the automated medicine synthesizer; as long as there were materials and the parameters were configured, it could extract the desired reagents. He had envied this for a long time, but on one hand, the asking price was astronomical, and on the other, he lacked the connections. Perhaps it truly was a wild wish on his part.
Butler Zhou stepped out to make a call. Upon returning, he said to the tense Song Ming, “It’s possible, but we need a few days.”
“Alright, alright! A few days is completely fine.” Song Ming breathed a sigh of relief.
The transaction was secured, and the parties agreed to hand over the goods and the payment in a few days.
To express her gratitude to the Zhou Corporation, Chu Yun also gifted a batch of seeds to them. The Zhou Corporation possessed plenty of land, and carving out a field to cultivate crops themselves was entirely viable. After consulting the old master, Butler Zhou accepted them with satisfaction. Their family would be the first aristocratic house to possess their own plants after the laboratory.
